Home Depot Issues Warning as Financially Strained Americans Slash Discretionary Spending

At the Goldman Sachs Global Consumer and Retail Conference in New York, executives from U.S. home improvement retail giant Home Depot issued a stark warning, noting that American consumers have faced persistent financial pressure over the past six quarters, causing demand for large discretionary home improvement projects to plummet as people focus instead on essential repairs.

Key points of this article: · Location: Goldman Sachs Global Consumer and Retail Conference in New York · Key entities: Home Depot, McKinsey & Company, Goldman Sachs · Key data: Home Depot store foot traffic fell 0.6% year over year; 65% of packages delivered same-day or next-day U.S.

Consumers Face Financial Pressure as Home Depot Foot Traffic Declines Home Depot has long been grappling with troubling consumer trends.

According to foot traffic data provided by Placer.ai, average visits to Home Depot stores fell 0.6% year over year, a steeper decline than the 0.4% drop at its main competitor Lowe's.

TheStreet reporter Patricia Battle noted that high mortgage rates have frozen the housing market, and consumers are avoiding major home improvement projects due to economic uncertainty.

At the Goldman Sachs Global Consumer and Retail Conference, Home Depot Chief Financial Officer Richard McPhail emphasized that the pressure consumers have faced over the past six quarters has been mounting steadily, with no sign of easing.

Inflation, interest rates, fuel prices and job concerns are deterring people from committing money to big projects.

McKinsey Report Reveals Trading Down as Consumers Buy Only Essentials Consumers have not stopped spending entirely, but they have changed how they spend.

McKinsey's Consumer Sentiment Report, updated in August 2026, showed that home decor had the lowest net purchase intent, down 32%, followed by accessories, down 30%, and furniture, down 29%.

William Bastek, Home Depot's Executive Vice President of Merchandising, confirmed this dramatic shift in shopping habits.

He noted that the company's growth is coming mainly from core essentials, with plumbing, electrical, hardware and tools performing very well both in stores and online.

People are shifting their spending from wants to needs, buying repair supplies only when an appliance breaks or a pipe bursts.

Home Depot Expands Fast Delivery to Meet Challenges in New York and Across the U.S.

To cope with the tough market environment, Home Depot has adjusted its strategy, reducing promotional activity to keep everyday prices stable.

Management used recent tariff refunds to absorb unexpected costs and avoid raising prices for consumers.

Bastek added that the company is committed to maintaining everyday value, and even after facing higher costs in the first half of the year, it will hold prices steady in the second half.

Alongside stable pricing, Home Depot is actively expanding its fast delivery options.

Bastek revealed that 65% of packages are delivered same-day or next-day, and 55% of large products arrive within two days.

McPhail said the company's goal is to deliver most items in stores within two hours or less.

Home Depot has also introduced a real-time GPS delivery tracker for heavy building materials and deployed an AI phone agent that speeds up resolution of routine customer calls fourfold, giving store employees more time to assist customers in person.

Source: Yahoo Finance Cover image source: Adobe Stock The post 家得寶發出警告 美國民眾財困大減非必要開支 appeared first on 星島日報 .